


And He's Home

by emrys (livingshitpost)



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist - All Media Types, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst with a Happy Ending, Brother Feels, Brotherhood, Brotherly Love, Brothers, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Hospitalization, Hospitals, Hurt Alphonse Elric, Hurt/Comfort, Illnesses, Implied/Referenced Near Death, In a way, Injury Recovery, Kinda, Light Angst, Major Character Injury, Major Illness, Medical, Medical Conditions, Medical Inaccuracies, Near Death, No Incest, Recovery, References to Illness, Rehabilitation, Restored Alphonse Elric, Sick Character, Sickfic, Wheelchairs, fucka yuo, haaaaa that one's an appliciable tag AND a pun, likely not anything to noticable tho??, probably anyway
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-19
Updated: 2018-02-19
Packaged: 2019-03-21 07:18:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 822
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13735902
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/livingshitpost/pseuds/emrys





	And He's Home

The waiting room smells like antiseptic and alcohol, and Edward is pacing, biting the fingernails on his right hand. He's not sure how much time has passed, or how many cups of water and coffee and tea Winry has handed him, or what's happening to his brother. Or why Colonel Mustang is touching his shoulder. He looks up for a moment.

"The doctor said he's stable," the colonel says. "You can see him now."

Alphonse's hand is limp in Edward's grasp, and he holds it as gently as he can, as though afraid that he might break it. 

"He's still weak," the doctor tells him, "but he should be able to pull through. Obviously, we'll need to keep him here, probably run a few more tests to make sure he's recovering properly, keep a close eye on him . . ." 

Edward isn't really listening. He sits in the chair by his brother's bed and holds his hand to his forehead.

Hours pass.

"I'm not leaving him," he says quietly as night begins to fall. "Not again."

(The military pulls some strings.)

 

Alphonse nearly rouses a few times, but never long enough to really be considered awake. Winry offers to stand watch over him, but Edward refuses each time.

 

Alphonse opens his eyes slowly. First one, then the other. There's a muddy blur of yellow before him, gently rising and falling.

". . . Brother?"

It doesn't even budge.

"Winry? Is that you?"

His throat burns. 

"Hey." He lifts his hand and weakly pats the yellow blur. "Hey, wake up." He lifts himself into a sitting position.

"Mmh?"

"Edward?"

"Yeah, Win?" He blearily rubs his eyes with a yawn. "Did I fall asleep again?"

Alphonse smiles, but it's short lived. "Yeah," he coughs, "you did. But it's not Winry."

"Hm?" Edward opens his eyes. "Oh."

The younger brother's entire body shakes as he coughs, and he doesn't stop, even when there are flecks of blood on his palms and the sheets below.

" _Shit_ , Alphonse." Edward quickly comes to his brother's side and holds him by the shoulders, then rubs his back, trying to minimize the pain until the fit subsides. 

"You okay now, Al?"

Alphonse nods.

"Okay, good. Save your strength."

He nods again, leaning forward on his hands.

(Edward can barely believe that those frail arms can hold him up as he tries to catch his breath.)

Alphonse whines a bit, opening and closing his mouth.

The older brother quickly gets the hint and rises, retrieving a glass of water and helping it to the younger's chapped lips. He drinks eagerly.

He takes a deep breath when he's done. A hand goes to his stomach, and his face is etched with regret for a moment, but he smiles nonetheless. "Thank you, brother."

And it's like a drop causing the cup to overflow.

He doesnt want to hurt his little brother, of course, but fraternal instinct takes control, and he holds Alphonse tightly, as if he'll slip and fall away if he ever so much as _thinks_ of letting go. 

Alphonse hugs him back, as tightly as he can manage. 

"It's okay," he says, though there's still blood on his lips.

"I'm okay," he says, though he's being fed through a tube.

"I'm here," he says, though he looks so beaten and broken.

"We're gonna be okay, brother," he says.

And they will be.

 

"Edward," Alphonse asks, "what are you doing?"

"What I've wanted to do since you woke up," he replies, moving the bags of fluid from the pole standing by his brother's bed to the one attatched to the wheelchair. "Think you can stand long enough to get in?"

Alphonse chuckles. "Yeah, I can do that." He tosses his legs over the side of the bed and brings himself to his feet. His legs shake, so he leans on Edward for support. 

"C'mon, I know you wanted to feel the rain again."

"Is this really a good idea?"

"Of course it is. It's almost gone." He hip-checks the button by the door and it swings open, giving the brothers access to the courtyard. 

"But the nurses-"

"We'll be quick, don't worry. The fresh air oughta do you some good."

The rain is barely a drizzle now. It's gentle on their faces, Alphonse closes his eyes and sighs deeply, allowing the drops to run down his cheeks as the clouds part.

"It's warm," he says quietly.

"Mm, yeah. It is. And to think I've been taking it for granted for so long . . ." Edward laughs.

"It even smells nice," Alphonse murmurs. "Not like inside, y'know?"

"Yeah, I know what you mean. It's cleaner."

"Fresher, too. It kinda smells like-"

"Home?"

"Yeah."

They're both silent for a moment.

"I'll get Winry to make you some of her apple pie for next time she visits, okay?"

"Assuming the nurses even let the two of you in."

There are women shouting inside.

Alphonse laughs. "Speaking of which . . ."

Edward's shoulders slump. "Dammit."


End file.
